Whether you’re looking at new releases from manufacturers, or the custom scene, there’s an overwhelming bias towards scramblers right now. But a well-executed cafe racer still revs our motors—and this classy Suzuki GS550 from Eastern Spirit Garage just sent us into overdrive.

So far, we’ve only seen cafe racers from the Polish workshop. But Eastern Spirit teammates Lukas and Sylwester are totally fine with that.

“This Suzuki GS550 is very similar in form to our previous Honda CB550 and Suzuki GS750,” they tell us. “Many will probably accuse us of copying these projects—but it doesn’t make sense to change something that’s good.”

Those are bold words, but their work leaves little room for argument. This late-70s GS550 is extremely well-balanced—following all the traditional cafe racer cues without feeling stale.…

Bike EXIF is an online magazine that showcases the coolest motorcycles, several days a week. That means customs and cafe racers, race bikes, concept motorcycles and style icons.
Founded by Chris Hunter in 2008, the site attracts contributions from world-class motorcycle journalists such as David Edwards (USA) and Gary Inman (UK), and leading builders such as Richard Pollock (Mule Motorcycles) and John Ryland (Classified Moto).